This book is a work of fiction. References to real people, events,
establishments, organizations, or locales are intended only to
provide a sense of authenticity and are used fictitiously. All
characters and incidents and dialogue
are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed
as real.

Copyright
2018 Tamara Miller

All
rights reserved.

This
eBook is intended for your personal enjoyment. It may not be resold
or given to other people. Please respect the rights of the author.

DEDICATION

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and Scott Hendrix

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Crebs

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Bennett

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Davis

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Davis

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& Gwen Williams

PROLOGUE

Isla Whitman was
sitting at her kitchen table in her breakfast nook, like she did
every morning, eating cinnamon toast and drinking a cup of coffee.
She got up to adjust the window blinds because the sun was especially
bright that day.

As she pulled the cord
to lower the blinds, she saw the Franklin sisters sitting on their
front porch across the street. Isla stuck her tongue out at them.
That was a stupid thing to do, she thought afterward. But
they're such busybodies. She remembered seeing them gawking out
their front window the day the police came to get her so she could
identify her husband’s body, which had been found hanging from a
tree in Upland. I saw their mouths fall open so far a fly could
have gone straight down their throats, and they could have choked to
death. Shame on me for thinking such a horrible thing.

As she turned to go
back to her chair, out of the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse
of the duplex just two doors over, where her daughter Franny and
Franny’s husband Harry started their life together. It was also the
place where her twin granddaughters, Emma and Jani lived after they
had been born. Those sweet girls are my reason for living. They
give me a purpose in life.

What was Franny
thinking, turning her back on those precious darlings and running off
with another man? Thank goodness
Harry loved her enough to take her back. What would have happened to
our family if he had not forgiven her? I love those two girls like
they are my own.

Isla sat back down at
her table, quietly sipping her coffee, and remembering the two times
after her daughter’s marriage that Franny and the twins had lived
with her. After Harry was drafted into the Army, Franny and the twins
had moved home with Isla and lived with her for two years. Then there
was the time Franny took off with that other man. Harry was
devastated and concerned about the welfare of the twins. The girls
came to live with Isla, and during the couple’s reconciliation
period, Franny lived there, too.

She remembered making
all the twins school clothes and their costumes for their dance
recitals. As the girls grew older, it was easier to tell them apart.
They are both tall, but Jani’s hair is darker and she always wears
it in a ponytail. Isla thought about how much she enjoys makingtheir
formals for their school dances. I suppose next I’ll be making
their wedding dresses, she thought with a smile.

Thinking a moment about
the twins’ boyfriends, I don’t think Nate is the right one for
Jani. He’s not much taller than her but he’s nice looking and
very quiet. I haven’t made up my mind about Emma’s beau Brad.
He’s tall, handsome, and very personable.

Her mind drifted back
to her own first love, Jonathan, Franny’s father. I was so much
in love with him. I was sure he was the one for me. I was such a
young fool. He sure liked to chase the girls. Things were never right
between us, especially after the incident with the baby, but he did
give me Franny. I can thank him for that.

And then there was
Jake. Although I never was in love with him, I thought he would take
care of Franny and me. My mother thought so, too; another mistake.
I’m happy we moved to Pomona, California, and I had the time with
my sister, Amy. I’m glad I was able to take care of her to the end.
Isla reached into her apron pocket and pulled out a tissue to wipe
the tears that had started to spill down her cheeks.

So many years
and my little ones are growing up so fast. I wish I could give them
some warning about life’s challenges, but they are going to have to
find their own way. I hope they choose their men more carefully than
I did. But if they don’t, I’ll be here to hold them tight and
love them unconditionally.

YOUNG LOVERS

CHAPTER
ONE

Christmas vacation
was over, and the twins were back at school. On Saturdays and a few
afternoons during the week, Emma taught dancing at a local studio.
The rest of the time she worked at the Orange Belt Emporium, a major
department store in downtown Pomona. Emma went out with Brad on
Saturday night, and they were together all day on Sunday.

Nate picked up Jani
after school on the days she didn’t work at the Owl Drug Store.
They stopped at Mel’s for a bite to eat and then on to the stables.
She made sure she was home before dinner because she didn’t want to
be put on restriction.

The girls weren’t
allowed to go out on a school night, but Brad called Emma every night
and they talked until her father, Harry, finally told her to get off
the phone.

One
Thursday after work, the phone rang and Jani
answered it, “Hello?”

“Hi, it’s Frankie.
Is Emma there?”

“Yes, just a minute,
I’ll get her,” said Jani as she went to Emma’s room to let her
know that Frankie was on the phone.

“Frankie?” Emma
said surprised. I hope this is a friendly call, she thought.
Our recent breakup didn’t go well. She had been
going steady with him for about a year. He was already out of school
and he picked her up at the Orange Belt every night she worked. They
spend a lot of time together. Emma broke up with him because she
wanted to date Brad. Picking up the phone, she said, “Hi. How are
you doing?”

“I’m doing fine.
Just thought I would let you know that I’ve asked around about your
new boyfriend. Do you know he is engaged to someone named Irma?”

There was dead silence
on both ends of the phone.

Could it be true?
Brad, engaged? she wondered. “You must be mistaken.”

Emma sat on the edge of
Jani’s bed. “Frankie called to tell me that Brad is engaged.”

The room seemed to blur
as her eyes filled with tears.

“Oh, no! Maybe it’s
a mistake. Maybe he’s just saying that to cause trouble between you
and Brad.”

“No. Frankie’s not
that kind of person.”

“What are you going
to do?”

“I’m going to ask
Brad when he calls tonight. I feel like such a fool because I was
really falling for him.” She sat on the edge of Jani’s bed with
her head in her hands. “I think I’m going to be sick to my
stomach. I wish Brad would call so we can talk.”

Ignoring his question,
she said, “I need to ask you something.” Brad was quiet. He could
tell by Emma’s tone that she had something serious to say. “Are
you engaged?” There was complete silence on the phone. “Well? Are
you?” she asked, starting to lose her temper.

“Well,” he
hesitated. “No.”

“Why did you
hesitate?”

“Well, I was engaged,
but we broke up just before New Year’s Eve. I’m not engaged,
now.”

“Were you engaged
when you came by the house, and we went for a ride?”

Brad hesitated to
answer. “Yes, but we hadn’t been getting along. I knew I was
going to break up with her. I wasn’t engaged when I saw you at the
New Year’s Eve party. That’s why I was at the party with Jimmy.”

“I don’t believe
you. I have to go. Bye,” she said abruptly and hung up. She was
feeling sick again. Going to her room, Jani followed closing the door
behind them.

“Was that Brad?”
asked Jani.

“Yes. He was engaged,
but he said he’s not now.”

“Do you believe him?”

“I don’t know,”
said Emma. There was uncertainty in her voice.

“Maybe he’s one of
those guys that cheat whenever they can.” They both sat on the edge
of Emma’s bed in silence. “What do you know about him? He’s
from another town and you don’t even know any of his friends,”
continued Jani.

“I’m glad I have to
go to school and work tomorrow. It’ll take my mind off of him.”

“I think he’s
nothing but trouble,” said Jani. “I’m tired and going to bed.
If you want to talk some more, let me know.”

It seemed to take
forever for Emma to fall asleep. She couldn’t turn off her
thoughts. Lesson learned, she thought. Don’t get involved
with people you really don’t know. It’s a new year and off to a
pathetic start. Get over it.

The school day seemed
long, and Emma was eager to get to work. It was the first of the
month, and her assignment was to send out customer statements. She
was looking forward to operating the elevator at lunch and dinner
break, and later she was going to be on the switchboard, a task she
always enjoyed.

It was time for the
regular switchboard operator to go home and Emma to relieve her. As
soon as she sat down, she answered the first call, “Thank you for
calling Orange Belt Emporium, how can I help you?” She listened for
the caller to ask to be connected to a department or to ask how late
they were open, which was the usual request.

“Hi, Emma?” It was
Brad

Her stomach did a
flip-flop. “Why are you calling me?”

“I really feel bad
about not telling you my situation, and I just needed to talk to you
again.”

“I don’t think we
have anything to talk about.”

“You mean you are
never going to talk to me again?”

“I guess that would
be a little silly, wouldn’t it?” Emma was smiling. She hated to
admit it, but she was glad to hear his voice.

“I hoped we could at
least be friends. I really like you. I thought we had fun together,
and right now, I’m not engaged.”They talked for quite some time;
she put Brad on hold when she answered other calls.

Returning to Brad, she
said, “I probably need to go back to Frankie, if he’ll have me.
I’m sure your girlfriend will be glad to have you back. This is all
too complicated for me.”

“But, I don’t want
to get back with her,” said Brad.

“I better go. I don’t
want to get in trouble with my boss.”

“Okay. Hope to see
you again soon.”

“We’ll see. Bye.”

Shutting down the
switchboard at 9:00 p.m., Emma went to the bus stop and sat on the
bench waiting for the #8 bus. She was tired and ready to go home. She
watched all the cars cruising back and forth and
thought she saw Brad’s car coming her way. Her stomach was doing
that flip-flop thing again. As his car came closer, she waved. Oh
no, he’s with a girl. The girl turned and flashed her middle
finger at Emma. Brad almost had a wreck as he jerked the steering
wheel while reaching over to grab her hand.

Emma was so
embarrassed. There were other people sitting next to her waiting for
their bus to arrive. Did they see what that girl did? she
wondered. Emma wanted to disappear under the bench, but she just kept
looking straight ahead. She was humiliated. No one had ever done that
to her before. Boys do that to each other all the time, but not
girls. Where is my bus? Hurry and get here, I want to go home.
She wanted to cry.

When the bus arrived,
she stepped on and went straight to the back and found a seat in the
last row. When it came to her stop she jumped off and ran into her
house, straight to her room. Harry, Franny, and
Jani were watching television. Other than greeting her with, “Glad
you’re home,” they didn’t pay much attention to her.

Emma had been home for
about thirty minutes when the doorbell rang. “I’ll get it,”
said Jani. When she opened the door, there stood Brad.

“Is Emma here?” he
asked.“I know it’s late but I need to talk to her.”

“Yes, she just got
home. I’ll get her.” Going to Emma’s bedroom door and opening
it a few inches, she said, “Brad is at the front door.” Emma’s
mouth dropped open with surprise. Her eyes were red from crying.
“What’s going on?” asked Jani.

“I’ll tell you
later,” said Emma.

“Brad? What are you
doing here?” asked Emma when she opened thedoor.

“Emma, I am so sorry.
Please come out here and talk to me.”

Emma stepped out on the
porch and closed the door behind her. “Was that her? Was that your
fiancé with you?”

“Yes. No, I’m not
engaged! She asked me to give her a ride to Pomona. She wanted to buy
a sweater at Lerner’s. I’m so sorry about what she did. It’s
over between us. I told her that this time I really meant it. I don’t
want to ever see her again. I didn’t realize how much I cared for
you. When she did that to you, and I saw the look on your face, I
felt so bad.”

“I have never been so
embarrassed in my life. Right there in front of everyone!”Emma’s
emotions were welling up inside, and her voice was shaking as she
fought back her tears. She didn’t want him to see her cry.

Brad put his arm around
her. She couldn’t help herself as she snuggled up to him. “That
is what I like about you,” he said. “You are so sweet. She is a
little rough. I guess I just got used to it. We have been going
steady for four years. We broke up several times but always got back
together. I bought her an engagement ring a year ago, and she had
even bought a wedding dress. It was to the point that everyone
expected us to get married. I felt trapped. Then I met you, and I
realized that marrying her would be a huge mistake. Please believe me
when I tell you, it’s over.” He was still holding Emma close as
he spoke. “I would like to date you and only you.”

I want to believe
him. Is he going to make a fool out of me? she wondered. “I
would like to date you, too. But, I’m not going out with you again
unless you show me that you have the engagement ring. Then I’ll
know she isn’t wearing it.”

“You’ve got a deal.
Again, I’m sorry about what happened tonight. I know it’s late,
but I had to see you.” He reached to pull her close and gave
her a passionate kiss. “I’ll call you tomorrow,” he said and
left.

Wow, that was a
delicious kiss. I’m so confused, she thought. Emma stayed on the
porch as she watched him drive away. I hope he’s telling the truth,
she thought. I really do care about him, but I’m not into playing
games. I’m not sure I’m up to getting involved in this triangle.
Brad’s ex might be trouble. I hope I’m doing the right thing.

CHAPTER TWO

Jani was keeping a
low profile at home. She knew her parents weren’t thrilled about
her hanging around the fairground’s horse stables with Nate. She
had started lying to her parents about where she was so they wouldn’t
know how much time she was actually spending with him. She was
careful to be home on time and not give them any reason to put her on
restriction.

In the meantime, Emma’s
relationship was doing well. Before she went out with him again, she
made him show her that he had the engagement ring. He was ready, he
took the ring set from his glove compartment to show her. He picked
her up every night after work, and they would spend hours listening
to records at her house. On weekends, they would go to a movie or
just for a drive. They had been dating for over a month, and Emma
believed him when he said he was only dating her.

“How about going to a
birthday party at one of my friends’ house tomorrow night?” asked
Brad one day. She had not met his group of friends yet and he thought
it was time.

“Oh, I don’t know,”
she said with a frown. “They are all friends of your ex’s. They
aren’t going to like me.”

“You’re wrong. My
friends aren’t like that. They all know that it’s over between
Irma and me. You’ll have to meet them sometime.”

Emma thought for a
minute. I probably should go. Jani said that I don’t know any of
his friends. “I guess you’re right. I can’t avoid them
forever.” She paused, and then said, “Okay. I’ll go.”

Brad reached over and
gave her a hug, “You’ll be fine,” he said. “We’ll have a
good time.”

There were six couples
who hung out together, which previously included Brad and Irma. Emma
didn’t expect Brad to drop all his friends because of her, but she
was nervous about being introduced to the group. She knew she was an
outsider and was afraid of the reception she
would receive from the girls. Girls can be so mean sometimes,
she thought. I’ll be as friendly as possible.

Driving to the party,
Emma asked, “Where is the house located?”

“It’s at the top of
the hill,” answered Brad. As he turned on a winding road in San
Dimas, Emma looked out the car window and saw a few large homes
scattered along the hillside.

“I always wondered
who lived up here. Are they rich?”

“Oh, I don’t know.
I do know that Cindy’s father is an attorney in La Verne.”

When they arrived at
Cindy’s house, Jimmy and Terry were hanging out in the garage with
some of the other guys by an ice chest full of beer.

.“Aren’t
you the two guys that pretended to be hitchhikers and Brad picked you
up as a joke?” Emma asked the two boys. They nodded and laughed.
“That really scared me, but it was funny at the same time.”

“Glad to see you
again,” said Terry.

Brad introduced her to
his other friends who gave her a welcoming smile. “Let’s go
inside and I’ll introduce you around,” said Brad. He took her
hand and led her into the house where most of
the girls had gathered in the kitchen.

The house was a modern
ranch-style home. The view from the front room window looked out over
the valley. Emma thought the furnishings looked like something right
out of a magazine.

Brad proceeded to
introduce Emma to the group inside. Much to her surprise, they all
seemed friendly. Bev, Jimmy’s girlfriend, was especially nice and
said she was glad to meet her.

“I’ll be right
back,” said Brad. “I’m going to get a beer from the garage.”

Bev made sure Emma
didn’t feel uncomfortable at being left in the kitchen without
Brad. Three of the other girls had separated themselves from the
group and were talking quietly in the corner. I suppose they’re
talking about me, thought Emma. I’m sure they don’t like
it that I’m dating Brad.

“Would you like a
beer?” Cindy asked Emma.

“Oh, no,” said
Emma, surprised at the offer. Seeing that Bev was drinking a soda,
Emma said, “I’ll have a soda like Bev’s,” pointing to her
Pepsi.

Sipping on her soda,
Emma soon joined in the conversation with the girls. Most of the talk
was about clothes they had bought and parties
they had recently attended. Brad returned from the garage along with
a few of the other boys. They joined the girls as Cindy opened her
birthday presents. Her mom served cake as
everyone sang, “Happy Birthday.”

Afterward,
they all paired off in couples and danced to record music in the
front room. The boys kept turning the lights off, and Cindy’s
mother kept coming in and turning them back on. Although she felt a
little uncomfortable in the beginning, all-in-all Emma had a good
time.

On the way home after
the party, Brad said, “I hope all the girls were nice to you.”

“It was okay,” she
said, giving him a smile. “Bev was the nicest. She made sure I
didn’t feel out of place.”

“That’s good. Even
though she is friends with Irma, I knew she would make you feel
welcome,” he said. “Bev is my favorite of all the girls. I’m
glad you had a good time.”While waiting for a traffic light to
change, he bent over and gave Emma a kiss.

“I know I had to meet
your friends sometime,” said Emma, rolling her eyes. “Now they
can go back and report to Irma.”

“I’m sure they
will,” said Brad, as they laughed together. “But we don’t have
to worry about that. They’re going to have to get used to you as my
girl.”

“Am I your girl,
Brad?”

“You betcha,”
he said, as he parked the car at the curb of Emma’s house. He
pulled her close to give her a long kiss. “What are you doing
tomorrow?” he asked. “I’d like you to meet my parents, and come
to my house for Sunday dinner.”

Brad walked Emma to the
door. Despite the bright porchlight, he gave her
a long kiss good night. “I’ll pick you up tomorrow afternoon
around one.”

The next morning at
breakfast, Emma told everyone about the party and meeting Brad’s
friends. She told them he wanted her to meet his parents and had
invited herto have Sunday dinner with them.

Jani commented, “Nate’s
father came to the stables yesterday to see him. They hadn’t seen
each other for five years. His dad has been living out of state but
is planning to move back to California.” She stopped to take a
drink of her milk. “His father wants to take Nate and me to
dinner.”

“Well, it looks like
it will just be the two of us tonight,” Franny said to Harry, as
she started to clear the breakfast dishes.

“Don’t you mean the
three of us?” commented Harry. Giving her a childish grin, he said,
“Did you forget that your mother is coming to dinner?”

“Oh, yeah, the three
of us.” Franny smiled as she realized the twins might not be around
much anymore for Sunday family dinners.

Nate called to let Jani
know he would pick her up around four o’clock to take her to meet
with his dad at Espiau’s, a Mexican restaurant in Pomona. Jani
wasn’t looking forward to meeting Nate’s father, knowing how
abusive he had been to Nate. Nate said he wasn’t too excited about
them getting together, but that was his dad, and he hadn’t seen him
for a while. Besides, he wasn’t going to pass up a free meal.

***

When Emma arrived
with Brad at his house, his father, Lee, was working in the front
yard. He was a small-framed man and walked a little bent over. He was
handsome and had a big smile when Brad
introduced him to Emma.

“You two go on
inside. Mom is in the kitchen,” said Lee.

The aroma of cooking
filled the house. It was an older home on Bonita Avenue, La Verne,
modestly furnished. The front room furniture was arranged facing the
television set. Against one of the walls was an upright piano. There
was a separate dining room with a large table.

Brad’s mother, Mary,
was a pleasant-looking woman with a friendly smile and a gentle
demeanor. Brad put his arm around his mother and gave her a kiss on
the cheek as she dried her hands on her apron front. That is so
sweet, Emma thought.

His little sister,
Sherry, seven years younger than Brad, came bouncing into the room
and giggled when she met Emma. Sherry wanted to sit in the front
room, right next to her brother and his new girlfriend.

Emma looked around the
room, seeing many framed pictures displayed on a small table. “Who
is that?” Emma asked Brad, pointing to a picture of a sailor.

“That’s my brother,
Vince. He was in the Navy, but he’s home now. He lives in Oregon
with his wife and their two kids. They will probably come down for
the holidays, and you can meet them then.”

“Is that Vince’s
wife?” Emma asked, pointing to a picture of a girl next to the one
of Vince.

“No, that’s Irma,”
said Brad, a little embarrassed. “Sorry about that, but she has
been around the family a long time, and she’s still friends with my
mom. She comes by to visit with her, even though we’ve broken up.”
Pulling her close as they sat on the sofa, he said, “You’ll have
to give me a picture of you, so you can be included in the group.”

Emma tried not to feel
bad, but she had a tinge of jealousy. After all, Brad and Irma had
been together for four years, so her name would probably come up more
than once. Maybe it’s a good thing Mom doesn’t have our photos
around the house, Emma thought. Between me and Jani, she would
constantly be changing the pictures of our boyfriends.

“You have pretty
hair,” Sherry said to Emma, plopping down next to her.

“Thank you, Sherry.
It’s a gift from my mother. Her hair is naturally curly and it was
passed on to me.”

“My hair is so
straight. It won’t hold a curl,” replied Sherry, twisting the
side of her hair between her fingers.

“I think your hairdo
is cute,” complimented Emma.

“Sherry, come in here
and help me,” Brad’s mother called from the kitchen.

“Yes, Mother,” said
Sherry, giving Brad a look that said she didn’t want to go. She
wanted to stay with her big brother and Emma.

After Sherry left, Brad
asked Emma, “Do you want a Coke?”

“Sure, that sounds
good.” Brad reached over and tried to kiss Emma. “Oh, Brad, your
mom is in the other room,” she said, as she ducked and pressed two
of her fingers on his lips.

Kissing her fingers, he
said, “It’s okay, she knows you’re my girl.”

I would never let
Brad kiss me at my house, she thought. I would die if my
parentsunexpectedly walked in,
that would just not be acceptable. Physical expression was not
common in her home. Harry and Franny considered that private. In
fact, the girls were never allowed to go into their parents’
bedroom unless they were invited, which seldom happened. Emma
remembered one day when her parents were at work, she went into their
room and just stood there and looked around. What’s the big
secret? she thought. I don’t see anything special in here.
It’s just another bedroom.

“Lee, it’s time to
wash up,” Mary hollered out the kitchen window. “We’ll be ready
to eat in a few minutes,” she told Brad, taking a few steps into
the front room.

Sherry helped her
mother put food on the table. “Come on in and sit down,” Mary
instructed Brad and Emma.

Sitting at the table,
Emma couldn’t believe all the food. Mary had cooked a big pork
roast, mashed potatoes, fresh green beans, and corn, and prepared a
large green salad. This was like a Christmas dinner at Emma’s
house.

The dishes of food had
been passed around the table and after taking a few bites, Emma said,
“Everything is so delicious, Mrs. Mills. Thank you for inviting
me.”

“We’re glad to have
you,” responded Mary with a smile.

During dinner, Mary
asked Emma where she was born and a little information on her family
background. Emma freely told them about her dad and mother and having
a twin sister.

“Gee! A twin sister,”
said Sherry. “That must be so neat.”Because of the age difference
of her two older brothers, Sherry sometimes felt like an only child.

Emma told them about
her grandmother, Isla, and her wonderful dressmaking skills.

“Brad, where were you
born?” asked Emma.

“We’re from
Oklahoma,” he answered.

“We came to
California when Brad was five,” said Mary. “We went back to
Oklahoma a few times, but finally settled in San Dimas. There were
more job opportunities here for Lee.”

“I was born here,
just like you,” said Sherry, wanting to be part of the
conversation.

“I rode a horse to
school when we lived in Oklahoma,” said Brad. Emma’s mouth
dropped open. She was not aware that some states still had rural
conditions. Although, she really hadn’t given
it much thought, she assumed everyone lived like she did. She
believed it when her grandmother would tell her about taking a horse
and carriage to town, but someone close to her own age riding a horse
to school was beyond her.

“You’ve got to be
kidding!” Emma replied in disbelief.

“No. In fact, my
school had only two rooms. One room was for first to fourth grades,
and the other room for fifth to eighth grades. Each grade had a
separate row. The high school was ten miles away,” explained Brad.
Emma was fascinated. She couldn’t believe his school was so small.

“We lived on a farm,”
said Lee. “I worked the cotton fields with my dad and two older
brothers.”

“Our house was next
to Lee’s parents,” Mary added. After Lee’s father died, the
family gave up farming and that’s when we made our final move to
California.”

“Before we moved to
La Verne, we lived in an apartment above an auto shop in San Dimas,”
said Brad. “One of my best friend’s father owned the shop.”

After dinner, Mary
brought out a German chocolate cake that she had baked from scratch.
Dessert was seldom served at Emma’s house. Sherry brought in
dessert plates and helped her mother serve the cake.

“Oh, this is really
yummy,” declared Emma. Brad reached over and wiped a bit of
frosting off Emma’s lip. She hurriedly reached for her napkin and
wiped her mouth. Brad poked at her lip again.

We never have sweets
at my house, she thought. Dad says it’s bad for my teeth.
Even the Coke that Brad had offered her earlier had been a surprise.
There were never sodas at Emma’s house. She had also noticed a dish
on the coffeetable in the front room filled with
candy. Mom has a candy dish on our coffee-table, but it never has
candy in it. I wished we had sweets
at home, once in a while.

Finishing their
dessert, Emma helped Mary and Sherry clear the table. While they were
doing the dishes, Emma told Mary that her mother worked at Buffums,
in the credit department.

“Oh, that’s really
a nice store. They have the nicest things there but very expensive,”
said Mary. “What does your dad do?”

“He lays hardwood
floors. That’s about all I know that he does,” she said with a
slight laugh. “I know he has a big machine he uses to keep our
floors shiny.”

It was getting dark,
and Emma said she needed to get home. She had school the next day and
still had some homework to do. She thanked Mary again for the
delicious meal. Mary told her they were glad to meet her and hoped
she would come back soon.

“Oh, you are going to
see a lot of her,” said Brad with a wink, and they all laughed.

On the way home, Emma
said, “I can’t believe you rode a horse to school. If your
parents hadn’t been sitting there I would have thought you were
pulling my leg.”

“We were farmers.
Everyone rode horses.”

“Your school was so
small. It must have been hard to catch up when you moved to
California.”

“Not really. In fact,
I was ahead of the other kids at my grade level, and they advanced me
two grades. I’m only a year older than you, but I graduated from
Bonita High two years ago.”

When they reached
Emma’s house, they sat in the car and talked and kissed for hours.
The porch light came on and soon Franny was flashing it several
times.

“I guess I better go
in,” said Emma. “I hope you meant it when you said your family
was going to see a lot more of me.”

“I did.” Then he
gave her one more passionate kiss. Brad walked Emma to the door
but didn’t linger. He didn’t want Franny to come out and confront
them about being late.

“Where have you
been?” asked Franny when Emma closed the front door.

“You know where I’ve
been,” she said as she crossed her arms in front of her and glared
at her mother.

“Yes, you have been
parked outside for hours,” said Franny, with a disapproving glare.

“You and Dad always
told me not to park in strange places.” Emma’s attitude was
showing. “Don’t look at me that way,” said Emma, seeing her
mother’s disapproving glare. “We were just talking.”

“Your father will
have a talk with you about this tomorrow,” said Franny, as Emma
walked away.

CHAPTER THREE

Waking early, Emma
planned to talk to her mother before anyone else was up. Knowing she
was in trouble for staying out late, parked beside the house with
Brad, she thought an apology might lessen the punishment.

While Franny was
cooking breakfast, Emma put her arms around her, saying, “I’m
sorry, Mom, about last night. You were right, I was out too late.
After meeting Brad’s family and hearing about his childhood, I had
a lot of questions and lost track of time. I won’t let it happen
again.”

“It was a school
night, Emma. Now that you’re working, as well as going to school,
you need your sleep,” Franny said earnestly. “Emma, I’m not
stupid, so don’t try to convince me there was nothing but talking
going on between you and Brad. Your dad wants to talk to you after
work, so don’t be late getting home.”

“Mom, I’m sorry.”

Jani walked into
the kitchen as Emma was apologizing. What a suck-up, she
thought, rolling her eyes when she looked at Emma. Maybe it’s
time for her to feel what it’s like to be on the outs with Mom and
Dad.

Emma did as she was
told. When Brad picked her up after work, she told him, “I have to
go straight home. I’m in trouble for sitting in the car with you so
late last night.”

“I’m sorry,” said
Brad. “I don’t want you to get in trouble because of me.”

“I just have to be
more conscious of the time. I hope my dad won’t put me on
restriction. Call me later,” said Emma as she hopped out of the
car.

“Your dad is waiting
for you in the den,” Franny told Emma when she came in the back
door.

Emma went to see her
dad. Standing in the den doorway, she said, “Dad, Mom said you
wanted to talk to me.”

“Come here so I can
look at you.” She stepped into the room
and stood in front of her father. “What were you thinking? Sitting
out in the car until eleven o’clock at night? That’s how girls
get in trouble. Do I need to explain that to you?” Harry asked.

“No, Dad. I
understand, but we were just talking about our families, and I lost
track of time.”

“Emma, you know that
you are supposed to bein the house by nine
o’clock on a school night. Not at the house parked outside.”

“Yes, I know.”

“Consider yourself on
restriction for a week. Maybe that will help you remember. Brad is
not to pick you up after work, and you will take the bus home. Is
that understood?”

“Yes,” with tears
forming in her eyes. “Can I go now?”

“I expect you to
honor our house rules from now on,” he said, giving her a stern
look. “You can go.”

Running to her room in
tears, but not slamming the door, she threw herself on the bed. How
can I go all week without seeing Brad? she wondered. I hope he
understands.

Jani went to Emma’s
bedroom door and opened it slightly, “Are you all right?” she
asked.

Emma motioned for her
to come in and shut the door. “I’m on restriction for a week.
Brad can’t even give me a ride home from work.”

“Now you know how I
felt when I was forbidden to see Eric. When Dad told me I couldn’t
see him again until I was eighteen, I thought my life was over. At
least for you, it’s only a week, not
the rest of your life. It will be okay,” she said sympathetically,
sitting on the side of Emma’s bed.

“I guess you’re
right. It’s only a week. I told Brad today when he brought me home
that I might be on restriction.” Feeling a little better, Emma told
Jani about meeting Brad’s parents and asked her about dinner with
Nate’s dad.

“It was all right.
Nate and his father, Ed, didn’t talk much. I just sat quietly and
listened.”

“That’s hard to
believe.”

“What, that I sat
quietly and didn’t talk?”

“Of course.” They
both laughed.

“It’s true. I don’t
feel comfortable around him and neither does Nate. You know he
physically abused Nate when he was growing up. I feel so bad for him.
I wish I could make it all go away, but that’s not possible. I
thought seeing his dad again would make him
happy, but it didn’t. And now, his dad is going to move here.”

“What kind of work
does he do?”

“I’m not sure. I
think he was in sales of some kind. He was living up north, in
Washington somewhere. He lost his job, and that’s why he’s in
town.”

“What does he look
like?”

“Nate looks like his
father, but Ed’s shorter with light-brown hair. I don’t think he
looked too good. He had on a suit and it was wrinkled.”

“Is he married?”

“He was, but they’re
getting a divorce. That might be another reason why he is moving
here. He said something about starting a church.”

“A church! Is he a
minister?”

“He recently became
ordained. I guess that’s what you call it. He said he’s looking
for a good location to start his church. As soon as he finds a place
he’ll let us know because he wants Nate and me to attend.”

“It sounds a little
weird, but I guess that’s how you get started,” said Emma.

“Weird, yes,” said
Jani making a silly face that made Emma laugh. “I’ve got
homework. We’ll talk later,” she said and went to her room.

When Brad called after
dinner, Emma gave him the news about being on restriction and that
she had to take the bus home from work the rest of the week.

“Emma, I’m so
sorry. It’s my fault. I won’t let it happen again,” said Brad.
They chatted until they ran out of things to talk about and then they
just listened to each other breathe.

On the way to school
the next morning, Jani reminded Emma that Easter vacation was coming
up, and if they wanted their parents to let them go to the beach for
a week, they needed to be on their best behavior. Every year groups
of kids rented beach houses during that time. The girls hoped their
parents had not heard about the wild parties that went on at Newport
Beach. They had not asked to go before because they were sure the
answer would be, no. But this was their senior year which they hoped
might make a difference. They had been saving their money to pay for
part of the expense in case their parents used the excuse that they
couldn’t afford it.

That night at dinner,
Franny asked Emma about meeting Brad’s parents.

“Brad is from
Oklahoma,” said Emma. “They had a farm there for a while and then
came to California because there were better jobs. Brad was so smart
that when he started school here, they moved him up two grades.”

“Well, that’s
impressive,” said Franny.

Looking at Jani, Harry
asked, “How was your dinner with Nate’s dad?”

“He was the nicest
man. He’s moving here from Washington State. He wants to be closer
to Nate. He’s going to start up his own business here,” responded
Jani.

“What kind of
business?” asked Harry.

“Oh, I don’t know.
I don’t remember what he said. Just that he is looking for office
space around here.” I’m not going to tell them he wants to
start a church, thought Jani. They might think it’s crazy,
too, she thought.

Franny and Harry nodded
with a smile. I wish I had my own business, thought Harry.
Maybe someday. He had always dreamed of having his own
flooring company. Franny had encouraged him to get his contractor’s
license, but he didn’t have enough self-confidence to take the
test.

***

Both girls knew they
had to keep out of trouble before they sprang the Easter week request
on their parents. During Emma’s restriction,
she tried her best not to let her negative attitude show. Usually,
the girls asked to get off restriction before the week was up, but
this time Emma decided to let it go. She helped with dinner several
times without being asked. Jani was also helpful in the kitchen.

“We’ll finish up
the dishes, Mom,” said Jani after dinner one night.

“Why don’t you go
sit in the den with Dad,” said Emma.

“My, my, girls!”
said Franny. “What’s the special occasion?”

“No special
occasion,” said Jani.

“We just feel like
helping out,” said Emma.

“Okay, I think I
will,” said Franny. She untied her apron and placed it in a drawer
and went to the den. “I think the girls are up to something,”
said Franny, sitting on the couch next to Harry’s chair.

“Why do you say
that?”

“They are being too
good. They helped with dinner, and they wanted to do the dishes
afterward without me nagging. Emma just told me
to come to the den and sit with you. That’s a first.”

“Well, enjoy it while
it lasts. We’ll soon find out what they’re up to.”

***

Easter vacation was
five weeks away. The cheerleaders were planning on putting a deposit
on a beach house and had asked the twins to commit to going. Emma was
included in the group because she was Jani’s sister. That meant all
the expenses would be divided nine ways. It was time for the twins to
make the commitment.

Wednesday night, all
four were at the dinner table. Emma caught Jani’s eye, making sure
her parents weren’t looking when she mouthed, You ask,
dropping her head quickly and continuing to eat. Jani looked at Emma,
also making sure her parents weren’t watching, and mouthed back, No
you, glancing back down at her dinner plate.

“What’s going on
here?” asked Franny, sensing the girls were up to something.

“Emma has something
to ask,” said Jani.

“Emma?” asked
Franny, “What is it?”

Taking a deep breath,
Emma blurted out, “Jani and I would like to go with the
cheerleading girls to Newport Beach during Easter week.”

“Well, which day?”
asked Franny.

“Not a day, Mom, for
a week,” said Emma, as Franny turned to look at Harry. “All the
girls rent a house during Easter week every year. We wanted to go
last year but were afraid you would say no. This
is our senior year, and our last chance to go as a group.”Again,
silence at the dinner table as Emma stared at Jani willing her to
speak up.

“It’s not like it’s
a free-for-all. Several mothers go along as chaperones,” said Jani.
Franny looked at Harry, again.

Seeing the questioning
looks on her parents’ faces she hurried to continue. “Before you
say no, there’s a meeting tomorrow night with all the mothers and
the girls. Just go to the meeting with us and meet the other mothers
to see what a nice bunch of girls they are,” said Emma.

“All the cheerleaders
are in our group,” Jani continued. “If you’re worried about the
cost, Emma and I have been saving our money and will be able to pay
for most of the expenses.”

“What do you think?”
Franny asked Harry.

“Go to the meeting.
Meet the other families and see what it’s all about,” Harry
responded.

“Okay. I’ll go, but
that doesn’t mean we have agreed,” Franny warned the girls.

“The meeting is at
seven o’clock at Mrs. Wesley’s house,” said Emma. The girls
could hardly contain their excitement, but at the same time,
understood their parents had not agreed.

Mr. and Mrs. Wesley
owned a popular restaurant in town, and their daughter, Jenny, was a
cheerleader. Their family had prominent status in the community. At
the meeting, Franny met some of the mothers for the first time who
lived in north Pomona. The so-called “upper class” and
professionals always impressed Franny.

The father of one of
the cheerleaders was a teacher at the high
school. Another father was a professor at Pomona College. One girl’s
parents owned a major furniture store in Pomona. Many of the women
belonged to the Ebell Club, a ladies-only social club, which Franny
considered a prestigious membership.

Franny remembered how
all the neighbors looked down on her when she was a child because her
father was a drunk. Sitting in the meeting among those she considered
wealthy, she was happy that her girls were included. Acceptance was
what Franny always wanted. She felt that letting the twins spend a
week with the elite would give them status. She would talk to Harry.
She wanted to let the girls go.

At the meeting, the
group talked about the deposit on the house, the meals, the cost of
food, curfew, allowing boys to visit the house, and who would be
chaperones. They decided they only needed one chaperone at a time.
After all, the girls would do the cooking and cleaning. None of the
mothers’ offered to be responsible for the whole week, so they
decided to split up into shifts. Two mothers volunteered for mid-week
and one for the last weekend. They still needed someone for the first
Friday and Saturday nights. No one willingly spoke up. One of the
girls said, “How about you, Mrs. Stein?”

Oh, no, thought
Jani and Emma. Not our mother. That will spoil all our fun.

“Well, I work, but if
it’s only the weekend, I think that would be okay.” All the girls
cheered, except Jani and Emma. Then the twins looked at each other
and realized if she chaperones that means we can go. They
joined in with the cheering.

When they got home from
the meeting, the girls thanked their mom for volunteering. They left
Franny to tell their father the news.

“How did the meeting
go?” Harry asked as Franny climbed into bed.

“I met some of the
nicest ladies and their daughters. It’s a lovely group of girls. In
fact, I volunteered to be a chaperone.”

“You what! Are you
crazy?” he said raising his voice. “No telling what will go on
during that week. Do you want that responsibility?”

“Settle down, Harry.
First, I think it was a privilege that our girls were included.
Several groups are renting houses, but this was the best bunch of
girls for the twins to join. Second, if I’m going to chaperone, I
can see firsthand what is going on. If I don’t like what I see,
I’ll bring our girls home.”

“Well, I guess it’s
settled then,” said Harry, a little perturbed that he had not been
part of the decision making.

“I’m sorry, that I
didn’t have a chance to discuss it with you first, but I was kind
of roped into volunteering. They needed one more mother, and no one
was speaking up. Then one of the cheerleaders asked me, and it was
done. It’s the first weekend, so I won’t have to take off work.”

“I hope you know what
you’ve gotten yourself into.”

“I do, and the twins
are so happy.”

“At least that gives
us a carrot to dangle in front of them for good behavior during the
next five weeks. I guess that’s worth something. I’m going to
sleep now. I have to get up early for work in the morning. You better
stock up on your sleep, too. I doubt you’ll get much during Easter
week,” he said as he rolled over and went to sleep.

He’s over
reacting, thought Franny. They are
nice girls. What could go wrong?

CHAPTER FOUR

Nate had been quiet
ever since the dinner with his dad. Normally, he picked up Jani after
school, and then they grabbed a bite to eat and went to work out the
horses. Jani had been waiting for him for thirty minutes, he hadn’t
shown up. This had happened a few times before
if he was working with one of the trainers and couldn’t get away.
She decided to take a bus to the fairgrounds. When Jani arrived, she
went to the stables, but he wasn’t there. Then she went to the
track area where he might be working one of the
horses. He wasn’t there either.

“Have you seen Nate?”
Jani asked one of the stable workers.

“He called in sick.
He won’t be in today.”

“Okay, thanks,”
replied Jani, a little puzzled.

Nate’s house was
about a mile from the fair so Jani decided to walk. If he’s not
there, I’ll catch the bus and go home, she
thought. Arriving at Nate’s rooming house, she found the front door
unlocked, so she went in and then upstairs to his room.

“Nate?” said Jani
as she knocked on his bedroom door. No answer.

“Nate. It’s Jani.”
Still no answer. She tried the doorknob, it was
unlocked. Opening the door she saw Nate on his stomach sprawled out
on his bed fully dressed. “Nate! Nate!” she said as she reached
over to grab his shoulder and shake him.

“Hi, babe,” said
Nate with a slur in his voice as he rolled over on his back, his eyes
half- shut. Is he drunk? she wondered. She looked around the
room but didn’t see any beer cans or other
signs of alcohol. But she did notice a strange odor in the room. On
the nightstand, next to his bed, was a clear
plastic bag with something in it that looked like dry grass.

“What’s this?”
she asked, holding up the bag.

“What do you think it
is?”

Jani remembered seeing
pictures like this in her Senior Problems class at school when they
were studying drugs. “I don’t know. You tell me,” she said
angrily.

“It’s pot. Do you
want to try it?”

“Of course not! I
don’t use drugs, and I don’t date boys that do. What has gotten
into you?” she demanded, as she dangled the bag in his face.

Nate had been smoking
pot for years. It was easy to score around the stables. He knew that
Jani wouldn’t approve and had hoped he could keep it from her.
Moreover, he hoped she would never find out that he was a dealer.
Small time, but he was the go-to-guy. It was extra money.

“I’m sorry, babe,”
said Nate as he propped himself up on his elbows. “Seeing my dad
again brought back bad memories and things I’ve
tried to forget. I don’t expect you to understand, your family is
good.” His body flopped back on his pillow.

“I’m not going to
stay here with you like this. I’m going home.”

“You can take my
truck,” he said, pointing to the keys on his dresser. “I won’t
need it tonight, and I can walk to work in the morning. You can bring
it back after school tomorrow.”

As she reached for the
keys, he added, “Just because you’ve got a license now, don’t
think you can race all over town.” He closed his eyes and drifted
off in a stupor.

“Okay. Sleep it off,”
she said, staring down at him. She found herself once again, feeling
sorry for him and his circumstances with his dad, but there was
nothing she could do to help. Jani hated to leave him in such a
condition but took the keys and drove home.

“What are you doing
with Nate’s truck?” asked Franny, when Jani came into the
kitchen.

“He has to work
tonight and didn’t want me to get home late, so he told me to take
it. I’ll take it back to him after school tomorrow.”

“Oh, that was nice.
Just be careful driving.”

“Is Nate here?”
asked Emma as she came in the back door.

“No. He’s working
late, so he told me to go ahead and drive home. I can take us to
school in the morning,” said Jani, trying to sound excited about
having the truck.

“That’ll be fun,”
replied Emma as she went to her room.

I’m never going to
tell anyone about the marijuana. Not even my sister, Jani
thought.

It was fun having a
truck to drive to school, but not under the current circumstances.
Drugs scared Jani because of what she had been taught in school. When
she saw Nate again, she was going to let him know that drug use was
something she would not tolerate. After school, Jani drove Emma to
work and then headed to the fairgrounds.

Nate was cooling down
one of the horses when Jani arrived at the track. “I brought your
truck back,” she said in a disgusted tone. Slamming the keys in his
hand, she looked around to make sure no one was close enough to hear
them talking. “Let me remind you, I don’t date anyone who uses
drugs.” She said adamantly.

“I know, and I’m
sorry about yesterday,” he said, sounding remorseful. Jani stood
with her hands on her hips as she listened to Nate’s explanation.
“I don’t believe my dad is here to open a church. He’s always
saying things to make me think he is going to settle down, but I
don’t trust him. How can anyone just start a church? It doesn’t
make any sense.”

“I guess we will just
have to wait and see,” she said, trying to sound positive. “Do
you have anything for me to do today?”

“Sure,” he said,
handing her the reins of one of the horses. “Take this horse and
walk her around the ring. I have another one coming off the track in
a minute.” He gave her a kiss and then a swat on the butt. That
made Jani smile, so Nate thought everything was forgiven.

***

The girls told Nate
and Brad about going to the beach during Easter week. The boys
planned to go on the weekends and after work during the week.

Even if Franny was
going to be there, the twins still anticipated on having a good time.
She was only going to be there for two nights; they certainly could
behave until she went home.

Harry took off work
early on Friday to drive them to the beach house. He helped them get
settled in and stayed long enough to meet some
of the other parents as they dropped off their daughters. Harry told
Franny he was going to the races the next day but would call her
afterward. Around ten o’clock he said his
good-byes to Franny and the twins and reminded
the girls to stay out of trouble.

Franny watched Harry
leave. She had an uneasy feeling. She noticed he hadn’t insisted on
her going with him lately. Was he meeting Tina there? Ever
since the time they took Tina to the horse races, Franny has
been leery about him going to the races alone. Tina had such a good
time, and Harry expressed that they should ask
her again. Does he pick her up and take her with him? I sawher flirting with him that day. Does he feel he has a free pass
to get even with me because of my affair with Clyde? she
wondered.

Tina usually alternated
working Saturdays and Sundays with Franny. They switched their
schedule the past weekend because Franny was taking this weekend off
to chaperone at the beach. Tina could call in sick and I wouldn’t
know. Was she at the races with Harry? Franny pondered these
questions but was afraid to ask. If there wasn’t
anything to worry about, she didn’t want to give Harry any ideas.
She decided not to bring it up but planned to
keep her eyes and ears open for any clues that something was going on
between the two. I’d better take advantage of the girls being
gone for a week and, when I get back home, add some spark back in our
marriage.